IUDs Deemed Safe and Effective for Teens

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A new study shows that IUD complication rates are no higher for teens than they are for adults.

Skeptical about your teenage daughter’s choice to use an intrauterine
device (IUD) as a form of birth control? New findings published in the
May issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology
might help put your mind at ease. According to the study, IUDs are as
safe for teenagers as they are for adults and provide a highly
effective, hassle-free method of preventing unwanted pregnancy.

The
largest IUD study to date, conducted by researchers at the University
of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston, helps assuage the fear
among patients and doctors that IUDs put teens at a high risk for
serious complications, such as infertility caused by pelvic inflammatory disease.

"Today's
IUDs are not the same as the ones that existed decades ago and are
undeserving of the outdated stigma they carry," said lead author Abbey
Berenson, director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Research in
Women's Health at UTMB, in a press release. "Modern IUDs are safe,
cost-effective, and provide years of worry-free birth control. Though
more research is needed, this study shows that IUDs should be among the
options considered to address teen pregnancy rates."

Outdated Stigmas and New Research

IUDs
first attracted negative attention in the late 1970s, when an IUD
called the Dalkon Shield was removed from the market because it was
found to cause a number of harmful side effects, including bacterial
infections, septic miscarriages, and in some cases, death. More than 30
years later, IUDs still get a bad rap and are rarely recommended for
teenagers due to the fear of severe complications.

However, Berenson's study shows that rates of IUD complications among teens are no higher than rates among adult women.

“For
many years, IUDs were infrequently used in the U.S., especially among
teenagers, so it was not possible to do this type of study,” Berenson
said in an interview with Healthline. “Recently, use of the IUD has
increased enough among teenagers to make it possible to examine adverse
effects among this population.”

In order to study IUD-related
complications among teens, researchers examined the insurance claims of
about 90,000 IUD users ages 15 to 44. After comparing the results by age
and type of IUD—hormonal or copper—they found that complications such
as ectopic pregnancy and pelvic inflammatory disease occurred in less than one percent of women regardless of their age.

They
also discovered that rates of early discontinuation were the same for
teenagers and older women, and that hormonal IUDs were associated with
fewer complications and lower rates of discontinuation than copper IUDs
for women of all ages.

“I think that this study, along with others
that have been conducted on this topic and recommendations by the CDC
[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], will help parents and
doctors appreciate that use of the IUD should be discussed when
counseling teens who request birth control,” Berenson said.

The Advantages of IUDs

While
all forms of contraception carry some risks, they also confer many
benefits, which is why it's so important to discuss all your options
with your healthcare provider to find the method of birth control that
is right for you or your daughter.

According to Plannedparenthood.org,
“the ParaGard and the Mirena IUDs are two of the least expensive,
longest lasting forms of birth control available to women today." They
may help lighten periods and can even be used during breastfeeding. And
the ParaGard IUD doesn’t affect a woman's hormone levels.

“The
primary benefit is that the teenager does not have to remember to take a
pill every day or come back to the doctor for a shot (as with
Depo-Provera) every three months,” Berenson said. “This is difficult for
some teenagers to do. Thus, the chance of experiencing an unintended
pregnancy while using an IUD is much lower than with use of some other
methods.”

While only time will tell, the increase in the number of
American women who use IUDs for birth control is a good sign that
physicians are beginning to put old stigmas behind them for the benefit
of young women everywhere.